What it is
Movies in the dark. The TV will be used for watching movies in a controlled environment, directly in front, in a home theater way. Mostly only high quality content, like Blu-rays, UHD Blu-rays, streaming and a little bit of HDR.

What it is
TV Shows in a bright living room. The TV will be used in to watch TV shows, in a bright room during the day, from multiple viewing positions at different angles. The content watched has an average quality: cable, streaming, SD channels, etc.

What it is
Video games. The TV will be used to play video games, directly in front, in a controlled light environment. Usually fast games, like online FPS, where motion blur and input lag is important.

What it is
HDR Gaming. The TV will be used to play HDR video games using consoles that support it or on current generation gaming PCs. Xbox One S, PS4 Pro, GTX 10 series and AMD RX series graphics cards.

The LG UH6100 is an entry level 4k TV. It includes a less accurate pixel structure (RGBW) which means that although it has the correct number of pixels, it can't produce the same level of fine detail as other 4k TVs. Despite this, the picture quality is average. Motion is handled quite well and the smart platform works well.

Picture quality of the LG UH6100 4k IPS display is average. The low contrast ratio and the bad black uniformity results in worse dark scene performance, with the black appearing more gray than really black. The gray uniformity is also problematic with this TV. The advantage of the IPS panel is that the picture quality remains similar when watched at an angle. Upscaling of low quality content such as DVDs or cable is very good.

The contrast ratio is average for the UH6100. The blacks are not very deep but that is not the worse that we have seen for an IPS panel. This is going to be a problem if you always watch TV in a dark room, but for a well light room, it shouldn't be a problem.

Good value:
Full-array/direct lighting is better for local dimming. As for the uniformity of the screen, it depends on the implementation. Some edge-lit TVs have more uniform blacks than some full-array TVs.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity the TV can obtain while playing a movie or while watching a TV show. This scene was selected to represent a more regular movie condition. All measurement are made with the TV set to be as bright as possible, but with a 6500k white. Measured with local dimming, max backlight and over SDR signal. Scene: here.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 2% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

When it matters:
Bright highlights, present on screen for a short time; especially for SDR content.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 10% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

When it matters:
Bright objects, present on screen for a short time; especially for SDR content.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 25% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 50% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 100% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 2% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

When it matters:
Bright highlights, persistent throughout a scene; especially for SDR content.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 10% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

When it matters:
Bright objects, persistent throughout a scene; especially for HDR content.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 25% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 50% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 100% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over SDR signal.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity the TV can obtain while playing a movie or while watching a TV show. This scene was selected to represent a more realistic movie condition. All measurement are made with the TV set to be as bright as possible, but with a 6500k white. Measured with local dimming, max backlight and over HDR signal. Scene: here.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 2% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

When it matters:
Bright highlights, present on screen for a short time; especially for HDR content.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 10% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

When it matters:
Bright objects, present on screen for a short time; especially for HDR content.

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 25% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 50% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

What it is:
The maximum luminosity, even if only maintained for a short time, of a white square covering 100% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 2% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

When it matters:
Bright highlights, persistent throughout a scene; especially for HDR content.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 10% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

When it matters:
Bright objects, persistent throughout a scene; especially for HDR content.

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 25% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 50% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

What it is:
The lowest maximum luminosity (usually after it has stabilized) of a white square covering 100% of the screen, with the TV set to be as bright as possible. Measured with local dimming and over HDR signal (if supported).

When sending an HDR signal, the overall peak brightness is average but quite good for a mid-range TV. It has around the same brightness as the Samsung KU6300. At around 400 cd/m² it is still decent for highlights bigger than 50% and is bright enough to watch in a bright room without problems, but it won't make HDR look as good as on higher end TVs that can get small highlights more bright.

The gray uniformity is pretty bad for a LED TV. You can see on our test picture that the corners are a lot darker and there is also half of the screen that has a bit of a pink hue. This will result in a dirty screen effect when watching some content like sport, where you often have big panning shots or in video games where the background is a uniform color. Note that the gray uniformity issues are more obvious when you watch the TV from the side.

The black uniformity is really bad for the LG UH6100. There is some major clouding leaving only the side of the screen really black. This is one of the worst TVs we have tested for the black uniformity yet in 2016.

The color gradient is pretty good for an 8 bit panel. There are not any banding issues that we can see from our gradient pattern. The only little imperfections that you can see when looking at the picture are more related to the gray uniformity.

Update 09/30/2016: Our original test was showing an incorrect color depth of 8 bit due to some incorrect drivers on our system, but after some correction to our test apparatus, we tested again the color depth and we can confirm that the LG UH6100 does in fact have an 10 bit panel.

Motion

The UH6100 provides good performance with motion. It features a 60Hz panel which can interpolate 30 fps content, for those who like the soap opera effect. Motion blur is also great, with only a short trail following moving objects. Movies played over a blu-ray player experience no judder.

24p content as movies from Blu-rays, DVDs and from streaming apps like Netflix will play without judder with the 'Realcinema' option turned-on. Movies playing on a cable/satellite box do have some judder issues, but this is not noticeable to most people. Even with the 'TruMotion' option set to 'User' and with 'De-Judder' set to max (introducing the soap opera effect), judder was still present.

Inputs

The input lag is quite low, which should good for most people. The UH6100 supports a wide range of resolutions, and displays clear text due to chroma support. There is a good range of inputs, but unfortunately most of them are hard to access if wall mounted.

1080p input lag is quite good for the LG UH6100. For casual gamers out there, with only 39.7 ms of input lag, the UH6100 should be a good choice. Change the input icon to 'Game Console' and select the 'Game' picture mode for lowest input lag.

Update 01/10/2017: The UH6100 just got a new update (04.30.82) that added a new 'HDR Game' mode and it greatly upgraded the performance of this TV. Note that input lag under gamer mode with a 1080p and 4k resolution was also reduce under 20ms.

Change the input icon to 'PC' to enable chroma 4:4:4. With this enabled, input lag is 71.9 ms. 4k @ 60Hz requires 'HDMI Ultra HD Deep Color' to be enabled, in 'General' settings. Text is not as clear due to the alternate pixel structure as can be seen here. This is penalized in the '4k Resolution' section of the review.

Average performance. The frequency response is below average, and there will be pumping and compression present at louder volumes. However, the maximum loudness and low-end cut off are quite decent for a TV.

Smart Features

The WebOS Smart interface is one of the best you can find on Smart TVs and the iteration on the LG UH6100 is very good. The interface looks great and is easy to navigate, with plenty of content and apps to chose from. The interface feels fast and without hiccups. From the smart platform, you can easily switch from live TV to any connected device like your computer, Blu-ray player or even browse your pictures and videos collection on a USB flash drive.

Apps

WebOS 3.0 might not have as many apps as other smart OS, like Android TV OS, but all the most popular apps are available, including YouTube, Netflix and Amazon Video. In general, WebOS apps offer a good stability.

The LG UH6100 offers an average picture quality, but at a low price. For watching TV shows in a bright room it may be a good pick, but for most people the recommendations below provide better performance.

The TCL US5800 offers a similar overall picture quality, but is only offered in larger sizes. Due to the different panel type, it offers a better experience watching movies in a dark room from directly in front. For bright rooms or those with a wide viewing area, the LG UH6100 is a better pick.

The LG UF6400 is a 2015 TV with very similar styling and performance to the LG UH6100. They provide very similar picture quality, but the LG UF6400 doesn't get as bright with HDR content and doesn't deal as well with reflections. Go for whichever one is cheaper.

The Samsung KU6300 is available at a slightly higher price, with a wide range of sizes. It offers a better picture quality in a dark room with deep blacks, and also has the same peak brightness of the LG UH6100 for dealing with a brighter environment. The picture quality does degrade more rapidly from the side. For those watching from a wide angle in a bright room go with the LG UH6100, otherwise the Samsung KU6300 is worth the extra money.

The Vizio D Series 4k 2016 is another entry level 4k TV, with above average overall performance. When viewed from in front, it offers better picture quality than the LG UH6100 but this diminishes quickly from a slight angle. When watching HDR content it also can't get as bright. The upscaling is sub-par and the smart interface isn't as refined. For watching directly in front in a dark room, go with the Vizio D Series 4k 2016. For a bright living room, go with the LG UH6100.

Average TV for a range of usage. Performs much better in a bright room, where reflections are dealt with well and dark scene issues are less obvious. Picture quality is average, even when viewed at an angle.

What it is
Movies in the dark. The TV will be used for watching movies in a controlled environment, directly in front, in a home theater way. Mostly only high quality content, like Blu-rays, UHD Blu-rays, streaming and a little bit of HDR.

What it is
TV Shows in a bright living room. The TV will be used in to watch TV shows, in a bright room during the day, from multiple viewing positions at different angles. The content watched has an average quality: cable, streaming, SD channels, etc.

Above average for watching TV in a bright living room. Picture quality is average even when viewed from the side. When watching non-HDR content the screen doesn't get bright enough to effectively deal with glare. Smart interface is great for casual watching or viewing pictures, and upscaling of low quality TV is great.

Good sports performance. Picture quality is average, even when viewed at an angle. Little motion blur, which is good. Some issues with the uniformity but only a little bit of the dirty screen effect is present.

What it is
Video games. The TV will be used to play video games, directly in front, in a controlled light environment. Usually fast games, like online FPS, where motion blur and input lag is important.

Even if the LG UH6100 supports HDR10, it is missing the wide color gamut, the high peak brightness and the local dimming. The overall picture quality is average, but the lack of features results in an average HDR performance. When watching in a dark room, the blacks appear gray.

What it is
HDR Gaming. The TV will be used to play HDR video games using consoles that support it or on current generation gaming PCs. Xbox One S, PS4 Pro, GTX 10 series and AMD RX series graphics cards.

Works well as a PC monitor. Picture quality is average, but chroma 4:4:4 support means text appears clear. Due to the pixel structure, some straight lines appear jagged as can be seen here. Response time and motion blur is low which is good.

Hello. Thank you for all the information provided, this website is really helpful to a lot of people. Would there be a review for LG UH6500 TV? What's the difference between UH6100 and UH6500? Can you tell me, whats True Black panel and Color Prime Pro? Thank you very much.

We already have the LG UH6500 in our lab and the reviews will be done in the coming weeks. At first glance, since we did not review it yet, it seems that the big difference would be that the UH6500 has a wide color gamut option and a special screen finish that the UH6100 does not have.

'True Black' is a special screen finish that is supposed to be better at dealing with reflection and 'Color Prime Pro' is what LG call their wide color gamut.

As I look through your websites reviews I come across this one and see 4k in parenthesis like this "4k" compared to others that don't, would there be a specific reason that would be so?

This TV uses an alternate pixel structure. Although it has the correct number of pixels for a 4k resolution, it cannot produce the same detail as other 4k TVs. This can be seen in the pixel photo here for the LG UH6100, instead of the more accurate structure seen here for the UF7600.

In regards to local dimming. The option does show up from time to time. I believe it will be there for HDR and randomly it will show up on other picture modes. So it is there, just have to be lucky to get it to show up.

We were not able to replicate this on our set. It hasn't been available when streaming HDR on netflix, playing HDR blu-rays or using the HDFury Integral to send HDR metadata. We will continue to test it and update the review once we get a conclusive result. It sounds like a bug which should be fixed in a future firmware update.

On LG'S website it states that the LG 43UH6100 has True Black Panel - so is this a mistake on their behalf or does the LG 43UH6100 really have the True Black Panel?

Interesting, on some specifications it lists the 'True Black Panel' and on others it doesn't. They definitely have a slightly different finish, as can be seen in our reflection photos of the UH6500here and UH6100here. At any rate, it isn't very effective at improving reflection performance and isn't a good reason to choose the UH6500 over the UH6100.

Hello, Rtings. I recently bought an LG 43UH6500 from Amazon and am now disappointed to know that it has the less accurate RGBW subpixel array. I'd like to know that since it shares the same, less accurate subpixel array as the UH6100 series, whether or not the quality of its panel is just as bad or better. If the former, would I see an improvement if I exchanged it for a SONY XBR43X800D?
Thank you for your time.

They are both pretty much the same unfortunately. You will definitely see an improvement of the picture quality with the Sony X800D over the LG UH6500. Also, if you are interested in HDR gaming, the Sony X800D has a much better input lag in HDR.

Hello, quick questions.
..but first I'd like to say, Wow. You guys really do put in a lot of work that people have no clue goes into a site to make it like this, and to have so much raw information.
So, THANK YOU.
Purchasing a few things from amazon instead of eBay just to help support a bit.
Anyhow,
I too, am dissapointed to find out that I may have and RGBW pixel structure. Technically wouldn't this be 3k since the white pixel is doing nothing for the picture? I have not yet opened the box because I'm thinking about reselling it. Is that pixel structure as bad as it sounds? I'm thinking of using it within 5 ft and purchased as a 4k computer/computer gaming monitor.
It's a 49" UH6090 .. is this the same as the UH6100 but without HDR?
I really don't know if I should keep it for my monitor/computer gaming/movies/netflix or just sell it.
Could you clear up thsee questions for me??
Thanks again guys!

Thank you for the feedback. LG argues that it is "4k" as defined by the ISO standards. It is however a less accurate structure, and this is especially noticeable for PC use. For movies and Netflix this isn't an issue, but you can see the impact on text on an RGBW here compared to a RGB TV here.

Hello, I'm fighting with LG about whether the stand or legs of this TV can fit onto the 6500 version. I believe that it can. Since you'll have both TVs, can you check if you'll get the same sturdiness with the legs of the UH6100 put on the UH6500? They don't seem to want people to know. The legs of the 6500 spreads too much for me, and I don't know if I can get it onto my furniture, but the 6100 legs look just right. My thanks because if it does, this is about to blow up, ha.

Unfortunately it cannot fit, since they don't have the same design. The leg of the UH6100 are screw in place in the back of the TV while the leg of the UH6500 slide in a hole at the bottom of the TV and are screwed from the bottom too.